World Forum for the Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations | Session 186 | 7-11 Mar 2022
Geneva
Agenda Item 2.4.
Follow-up to the eighty-third session of the Inland Transport Committee (ITC)

33. The secretariat briefed WP.29 on the outcomes of the eighty-fourth session of the Inland Transport Committee (ITC). This session celebrated the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Inland Transport Committee and during this session the ITC discussed the critical role of Road Transport on Climate Action. ITC invited all WPs to submit any ongoing communications and plans as it relates to Climate Action by October 2022.

34. He highlighted the following ITC decisions with relevance to WP.29:

“31. Took note of the status of implementation by the Committee and its subsidiary bodies of the revised Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) Road Map that was adopted at its eighty-third session and encouraged continuation of the work of SC.3 on smart shipping, River Information Services, and innovative technologies in the recently adopted European Code for Signs and Signals on Inland Waterways (SIGNI); of WP.1 on the safe deployment of Automated Vehicles in traffic; of WP.15 on telematics for the transport of dangerous goods; of WP.29 and the Working Party on Automated/Autonomous and Connected Vehicles (GRVA) on the implementation of the framework document on the safety of automated vehicles; including a look at artificial intelligence, to promote safety, environmental protection, and energy efficiency;.

34. Noting with appreciation the secretariat’s paper (ECE/TRANS/2022/16) on the critical role of inland transport in accelerating climate change mitigation worldwide and on the overview of related activities by the Committee and its Working Parties; also noting that the Committee has the mandates, capacity and expertise to further enhance this critical role for the Committee’s members and contracting parties:
  1. Recognized the urgency of stronger actions against climate change, as identified in the Glasgow Climate Pact, to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 13 and the target of the Paris Agreement on climate change and Sustainable Development Goal 13;
  2. Expressed its resolve that the Committee and its Working Parties should take action to accelerate their work and impact for climate change mitigation and adaptation;
  3. To achieve that, invited its Working Parties to submit to the secretariat until 14 October 2022 their ongoing contributions, future plans and suggestions in support of climate change mitigation;
  4. Requested the secretariat, in consultation with the Bureau, to prepare a comprehensive paper with these activities and action-oriented options for the Committee and Working Parties for consideration at the Committee’s eighty-fifth plenary session;

52. Endorsed the activities of and progress made by WP.29, as listed in ECE/TRANS/2022/22.”

35. On request by France, the secretariat informed WP.29 of the two side events organized by the section back-to-back with the seventy-fifth Anniversary of ITC. He introduced the topics of the side event on “Used Cars for Africa” held on 21 February and “Automation, Connectivity and E-Mobility held on 23 February 2022. Explaining the side event on “Used Cars for Africa” he stated that it comprised of two sections, the first covered progress report on the UNRSF project of “Safer and Cleaner Used Vehicles for Africa” and recent developments in Africa and it included presentations from the project partners, (UNEP, UNECE, CITA and FIA) with project updates, recent developments and proposed future activities. He further explained that the second half of this event was a round table discussion of experts with a focus on moving towards a harmonized framework for safe new and used vehicles for Africa.

36. The second side event on Automation, Connectivity and E-mobility, consisted of two expert round tables, highlighting the transformations that would form the future of mobility, in terms of performance, use and ownership as well as impact on the society and climate. The expert roundtables also explored the role of industries, their achievements and future contributions towards circularity in E-mobility. The secretariat also hosted an exhibition and a demonstration which show-cased activities of institutions related to the theme of the side event on Automation, Connectivity and E-mobility.

37. The secretariat informed WP.29 that ITC report would provide details on the outcomes of the side events in its annex and all the presentations would be provided on the dedicated websites of each side event.